Turkeys. Who Told Me I Could Raise Turkeys?

No one told me, I just decided. Kind of the same way I decided I could raise rabbits and pigs, but those are stories in themselves. We've dragged ourselves back into a good place and we're trying again. We're serious about this homesteading thing and are better informed, stronger emotionally and financially, and ready to get down to business.

With so much chicken related success...okay, maybe success is too strong a word. A few bobbles aside, we're keeping them alive and healthy and they seem pretty happy, going about their chicken lives pecking and pooping and jumping each other for sport. Having eaten many yummy eggs and finally managing to keep some meat birds set me thinking I could probably raise turkeys too.

Blackhead, Newcastle Disease, Influenza, And The List Goes On

Turkeys are pretty delicate creatures, especially when they're young. Research tells me chickens and turkeys don't mix for that reason. Chickens carry diseases like blackhead, which they throw off but which kills turkeys. Not a fun proposition, buying a bunch of turkey poults only to have them turn black in the head and then keel over.

Okay, so their heads don't really turn black. The real symptoms involve gross, watery poops, ruffled feathers and stunted growth. The name comes from a bluish look to the head caused by cyanosis. Apparently, that doesn't happen all the time, so I won't bother looking for any blue heads. By that time it'd be too late anyway.

My best bet is to keep the poults in a clean environment and away from chickens and soil until they've built up some immunity. Parasite management is key in poultry raising. When I think about it, it's pretty essential in any situation where we keep animals in confined spaces. Imagine no toilets and having to slog through your own poop until someone came along and scooped it away. If poop scooping wasn't someone's idea of a fine pasttime, you'd probably get pretty sick. Lots of bugs enjoy poop and quite a few of them make you sick.

How'd Turkeys Ever Survive and Evolve?

They didn't. Not the way we think of them, those forty plus pound creatures that grow to such ludicrous sizes  they can't breed on their own or even continue breathing much past butcher weight. Those white turkeys born on most commercial turkey farms were bred for fast and furious meat production and need help breeding and producing eggs. If you want to know what they call free range production of these creatures, take a look.

That's why I chose a turkey breed from the listing on the American Livestock Breed Conservancy. I'd like at least a good chance at keeping a flock of natural breeders that won't keel over from the weight of their own meat. Well, that and my need to get away from commercial production meat. I chose bourbon reds.

Teaching Turkeys To Eat and Drink

Normal turkey poults learn from their mama. When she isn't around, as in this case, they have to learn the most basic of skills on their own or die. Usually they die, so I used a couple of tricks to make sure that didn't happen. Water is essential, that's obvious, and they should have it pretty quick after coming home. So how do you teach a poult to drink?

Turkeys, like most birds, love shinies. Can't you just see it, turkeys wandering the woods, beaks thrusting back and forth on their tiny turkey heads, searching for yumm...oh, look! Shiny! Peck it!

I wonder how many wild turkeys that behavior kills. In captivity, I can use turkey curiosity to my advantage. I fill my waterer with clean water, add a little apple cider vinegar to help with those nasty parasites - hey, it can't hurt - and drop a few shinies in the bottom. Worked like a charm. Turkey poults came from all over the brooder just to peck at those shinies and each one came up with a beakful of water. Lesson learned. I'm keeping the marbles in there awhile because they just can't stop diving for the shinies, which means they drink more water, which helps clean out turkey systems while it hydrates.

I applied the same principle to the 28% game bird starter. Sprinkle some over a mirror and on a piece of tin foil and turkeys can't resist pecking. Now they've learned to eat.

As you can see from the picture, the feed area already needs a cleaning. This picture was taken first thing in the morning, so you can see how much work turkeys can be when they're young. If I left the area like this for long, I'd have sick turkey poults. 

Fascinating Turkey Poults

Maybe I'm an oddball, but I love watching turkey poults. They've only been here a couple of days and I'm already having a tough time not staring at them. Creepy as that sounds, it's a learning tool. Turkey poults fall out on their sides to sleep. I only had to run over in shock once to figure out they weren't really dead.

Watching them peck and strut also keeps me aware of their needs. If turkey poults are too hot, they'll flock away from the heat lamp. Cold turkeys pile, which could be a death sentence for those on the bottom.

As much as I've learned about poultry, I can't claim expertise in turkeys. I'm brand new to this, but experience is the best teacher, so wish me luck.